Silver Trails
by Meridianpony
Summary: Will he die, or will he live? Which path will be forged, who will win in the end? Only time, and a decision, will be able to tell. He commits seppuku. He does not commit seppuku. A choice is made, a path chosen, and then the world continues to spin, as if the decision is inconsequential. It is anything but.


In the stream of time, there are two trees that emerge from the cluster of roots that reality has built itself on for centuries. Each tree is thick, and powerful—representative of a choice, that will direct the whole course of the world itself once it is made. Branches stretch higher, above the tree trunks. Some are short, ending in dead leaves and snapped twigs, but others twist and spiral into the dimensions for centuries, ending in flowers and fruit. Each tree has both death and life at the ends of its wooden pathways, but it is not the endings that deserve attention, as pleasant as that might be.

Instead, it is the choice that must be made, for a path to be chosen and a tree to be grown.

Will he die, or will he live? Which path will be forged, who will win in the end?

Only time, and a decision, will be able to tell.

* * *

Some say Hatake Sakumo is a hero.

Others say he is the cause of a war. Others still, farther down the timeline, say he is the cause of two.

In one world, he is a messiah. The answer to the prayers of a broken people, the foundation of a village made strong once again.

In another, he is a prisoner, broken himself, with nothing but scars to show for all his attempts at a righteous life.

In some, he is dead.

In others, he is not.

Disgrace, Hokage, traitor, hero, rogue, captain, slave. The world is not kind, but it is not impossible to navigate, either. Sometimes luck is on Sakumo's side, sometimes it is not.

Sometimes he dies quickly, in the blink of an eye. Other, unluckier times, it stretches out for hours, days, _years_ before his life is extinguished.

He commits seppuku.

He does not commit seppuku.

A choice is made, a path chosen, and then the world continues to spin, as if the decision is inconsequential.

It is anything but.

* * *

In most worlds, he has a son. Hatake Kakashi is usually his name, and more often than not he shares his father's fate.

Sakumo dies. Kakashi dies. Konoha mourns for only as long as they must. Sometimes they don't mourn at all, but celebrate the extinguishing of a traitor and his mangy son.

Sometimes Kakashi does not share his father's fate. Sometimes, when Sakumo has cut his own stomach open and is watching red gush from the wound, his child finds him half dead on the floor.

Many times, he holds the ceremonial knife to his bare stomach and braces himself for the pain that is to come. He tightens his grip on the handle, prepared to do what he swore to, when a small noise of disbelief sounds from behind him. He jerks in surprise, and the blade slips and cuts into his skin just a little. Blood trickles down his abdomen. He turns, sees Kakashi. There is a look of shock, fear, _pain_ in the child's eyes, and Sakumo realizes then that he has a choice to make.

He drops the blade. Or not. He kills himself with his own son watching.

Kakashi tries to save him. Kakashi watches him die. Once, and only once, Kakashi takes the blade Sakumo had used, still crimson and sticky with his father's blood, and slits his own throat. That particular timeline had burnt out fairly quickly afterwards, and Konoha had crumbled until nothing was left in the wake of both Hatake's deaths.

Sometimes Kakashi does not arrive before Sakumo dies, and as the world fades to black Sakumo always, _always_ regrets his choice, because leaving Kakashi to find his still body is not what he had wanted to happen.

But once the choice is made, it is impossible to go back.

* * *

Sometimes, sometimes, _sometimes_ the world is saved—and sometimes it is razed to the ground, without a single survivor and so much pain and suffering that it can't even be described.

* * *

Seppuku isn't always the cause of his death. He dies during _the mission_ a few times as well—dies honored as a hero and giving Kakashi a legacy to look up to in the meantime. A war does not start, Kakashi is spared from the monstrous childhood he sometimes faces. Occasionally he dies and the war still occurs, and then it's all up to Kakashi—sometimes his son is wise beyond his years, skilled, and survives the war with minor casualties: A scar, a damaged ear, a missing eye. Other times Kakashi, enraged by his father's death, throws himself into battle with abandon, and while he is hailed as a war hero both his mental state and physical state are so damaged that he can barely live afterwards.

And then there are the worlds where Kakashi is blown to bits on his first mission, or slashed nearly in two, or captured and tortured until his interrogators realize he's too young to know anything and kill him without a second thought.

Sakumo dies with his son on the battlefield in a few timelines as well, when he lives. As twin blurs of silver they tear through the enemy ranks, twisting and slashing and leaping with all of the grace of a dangerous predator. Eventually they are felled, because not even the two of them working together are enough to hold off the entire Iwagakure army, and Sakumo grips Kakashi's hand as the younger bleeds out into the dirt, whispering apologies and comforts and _anything he can find breath to say_ before his son stills. Sakumo is quick to follow him.

The timelines where he sees Kakashi grow into adulthood are rare, because Sakumo is powerful and on the radar of just about every shinobi in their world, and the bounties on his head are high. But those timelines still exist. A few times Sakumo watches Kakashi become the copy-nin, rising quickly through the shinobi ranks. Kakashi dies in ANBU sometimes. The entire village mourns his death, because Sakumo teaches his son well when he lives and Kakashi becomes someone who will be missed after death.

There is only one timeline where Sakumo survives, and dies of natural causes just after Kakashi becomes Hokage. Just one, because for all of his morals and teachings he has always had a wider sphere of influence as a martyr or legend.

Fate is not kind. Neither is destiny, and Sakumo learns this the hard way. Over, and over, and over, and over—

* * *

"Team Seven, I would like you to meet my father, Hatake Sakumo," Kakashi introduces, unable to keep the note of pride out of his voice. His team stares up at the tall man in awe. Naruto's grin looks physically painful. Sakura looks like she might explode, and even stoic Sasuke has a slightly star-struck look on his face. "You've probably heard of him—Konoha's White Fang. He's going to help us with our training this morning…"

* * *

Because Sakumo is dead, killed by his own hand, Kakashi becomes obsessed with the rules. He becomes _too_ obedient, too quick to follow orders that do not make any sense at all.

But Kakashi is blinded by his anger and frustration and sadness, so much so that he is unable to make a decision where it counts. The Kannabi bridge mission ends in disaster. Kakashi loses an eye, but gains almost immediately after.

Madara gets Obito, and Kakashi's world shatters.

Because Sakumo is dead, killed while defending Konoha from invaders and valiantly throwing his life away for the good of the village, Kakashi becomes a warrior. He is fierce, proud of his father's legacy, wields his weapons with a proficiency none could hope to match.

Kannabi bridge nearly ends in success. Kakashi does not hesitate to race after a captured teammate, but for all of his skill and their successful rescue of Rin he is not able to prevent the Earth Jutsu that brings the whole cave down on their heads. However this time it is Kakashi who leaps to action, tossing Obito out of the way of the falling boulders, sacrificing himself just as his father had.

Madara takes Kakashi that time, and Konoha does not survive against them.

Because Sakumo is _not_ dead, Kakashi is a little rebellious. It's natural for a teenager to be like this, Sakumo hears from _every other parent on the planet_ , but he still doesn't quite understand it. Despite Kakashi's stubborn streak, he's a good kid. He has a good teacher, and a father who is willing to teach him anything he asks. Kannabi bridge is a successful mission—

Sometimes.

Even when Sakumo is alive, sometimes Kakashi dies. Sometimes he loses an eye, and it isn't always replaced by a Sharingan. Madara takes Obito. Madara takes Rin. Madara takes Kakashi. Sakumo mourns. Sakumo celebrates. Sakumo comforts his sobbing son.

Sakumo is silent, cold and alone and _dead_ in a graveyard. Kakashi kneels over his grave, spitting curses at his corpse. Putting flowers in the vase nearby. Cheerfully telling Sakumo about his most recent mission.

Sometimes Kakashi is right beside him in the earth, and sometimes he doesn't come to visit at all.

* * *

When Sakumo is alive, he teaches Kakashi in his spare time, because there's no way he's sending his son out into the world without as much knowledge is possible, prodigy or not. In some timelines this is enough for Kakashi to recognize the symptoms Rin gasps out as they run, enough for him to stop and call for help as quickly as possible, enough for Rin to _survive_ against all odds and despite the bijuu inside of her.

When Sakumo is dead, Rin ends up with a hand through her chest, and Kakashi is left a shaking wreck with more blood on his hands than in his body.

* * *

Once, Sakumo doesn't even become a shinobi, instead choosing the humble career of a farmer and setting up his fields on the western edge of Konohagakure.

Without Sakumo, without Kakashi, without the numerous students and followers each Hatake have, that timeline destroys itself in a violent and brutal war that tears the land apart. No one even notices the limp bodies of a farmer and his son in a roadside ditch, nor could they ever understand the strange air of power hanging around them—as if something important has been lost, crushed beneath marching feet and clashing metal.

* * *

Once or twice Sakumo dies when the Kyuubi is released into the village. He meets Kakashi's team. They are young, and fortunate to not have a war hovering over their heads when they graduate. He takes Minato's son in, raises the child as his own, and Kakashi gets to teach his little brother how to be a ninja.

He never lives to see Naruto become Hokage, but he isn't worried. He knows Naruto will get there eventually.

His life, or death, is never enough to stop the Uchiha Massacre no matter how, when, or where he dies. In life he is never able to do enough to stop the ambitious doujutsu users from planning the coup d'etat. It seems that the massacre, along with Kannabi bridge, is written in time-must occur, but unlike Kannabi bridge the results are the same, in every timeline. The Uchiha in general are the cause of Sakumo's death several times. They set up suicide missions for him if he gets too close to discovering their secrets, and once manage to assassinate him in his own home for revealing information he'd learned about their planned betrayal to the Hokage. He isn't sure if Kakashi was killed along with him that time.

The Uchiha try to kill Kakashi as well, in some timelines where Obito has gifted him with a Sharingan. When Sakumo is dead, sometimes they succeed. They succeed when he is alive, as well, and that hurts more than any death he could suffer because _he failed to save his son._ In these timelines he wonders what Kakashi would have done if he had died (from seppuku or battle or _anything_ ) earlier, and lifts his eyes in a prayer of thanks that he did not.

* * *

"Who are you?" Sakumo asks, tilting his head at the figure in front of him. They have long hair—gorgeous hair, Sakumo thinks, and eyes that shine with mischief and a bit of darkness that Sakumo is… intrigued by. They regard Sakumo carefully, eyes flickering towards Kakashi who stands proudly at his father's side, wearing his brand new hitai-ate.

"I am Orochimaru," they say. Sakumo grins.

"Sakumo," he introduces himself. "Will I be seeing you around?" Kakashi shoots him a surprised glance, and Orochimaru does as well, much more subtly than Kakashi had. Sakumo gets the impression that Orochimaru isn't asked that very often.

"We shall see," Orochimaru says evenly. Sakumo smiles again, and even as Kakashi begins to drag him away he waves cheerfully at the normally isolated Sannin.

(It's a good timeline. Sakumo manages to convince Orochimaru to stay, and the new addition to their family is a welcome change—one that doesn't happen in very many other timelines, but one that Sakumo loves regardless.)

* * *

Sometimes he watches the events leading up to the Fourth Shinobi War unfold right in front of him, with Kakashi at his side. Once he is Hokage when it happen. Sasuke betrays them, sometimes, and other times Sakumo and Kakashi's combined efforts are enough to convince the last Uchiha to stay, much like they had Orochimaru in another timeline dimensions away. When he is dead Sasuke betrays them every time, and even when he is alive sometimes he makes the wrong decision, says the wrong thing.

Sasuke kills him once, at the Kage Summit. It is largely an accident—Sasuke's Amaterasu is uncontrollable for half a second, but half a second is more than enough time for Sakumo's skin to light. He does not know if Sasuke had meant to kill him, but that becomes irrelevant a moment later, because Kakashi comes bounding from the darkness, lightning in hand and fury etched into his face. Kakashi is his most trusted bodyguard for events such as the Kage Summit, but Sakumo regrets bringing him this time, because Kakashi thrusts his hand through his former student's heart without a moment's hesitation. The last thing he sees before the black flames consume him is Kakashi racing towards him, crying out as Sasuke's body crumples behind him—

* * *

The Fourth Shinobi War is all of the forces of chaos, discord, betrayal, and fear working together in terrifying harmony. Sakumo is only alive for it in less than half of the timelines, but sometimes (not always) he is resurrected into it.

His choice of life or death always affects the sides of the war. Sometimes, when the mask comes off, Obito is behind it. Or it is Rin, or Kakashi. He fights with his son against his old teammates. They fight against Madara. In one timeline where he is dead, he is revived just in time to witness Rin execute his son at Madara's feet. In another he is killed by Kakashi himself, with a cruel smirk on his face, and watches as his son, presumed dead decades ago, tears the Allied Shinobi Forces apart single handedly.

* * *

"You aren't going to die, Sakumo-san," Sakura says determinedly. She narrows her eyes, and Sakumo can tell she's running on her last dregs of chakra. If she doesn't stop soon she'll risk chakra exhaustion, and he isn't going to let that happen. He reaches down and pushes her hands away from the gaping hole in his stomach, placed there by Madara himself.

"Sakura—" he begins, but she smacks him. It sends a jolt down his entire body, jarring pain through his stomach from the wound. Ordinarily he would hiss at the blow, but he's too weak to do so now.

"Don't you dare," she snarls, fierce and bright and beautifully strong. She's always been his favorite—not that he'd ever tell the rest of team seven that. She'd worked hard to catch up to her teammates with Sakumo and Kakashi's guidance, and all of her efforts have paid off—she's still alive, after all. She'd baked Sakumo cookies on his birthday, too. He'd forgotten to get the recipe from her before the war started—

He catches himself thinking that and shakes his head slowly. It must be the bloodloss.

Blood pours out of him at an alarming rate. Sakura is covered in it as she strains to close the hole, or at least slow the bleeding. She'll kill herself at this rate.

"Enough," he orders her. She blinks at him, caught off guard by the seriousness of his tone for a moment before she scowls.

"Not a chance," she says. "I'd miss you far too much if you were gone. Also, Kakashi-sensei would kill me if I let you die."

He chuckles, but it's bitter and half-hearted.

"Go help your teammates," he tells her. The sounds of Sasuke, Naruto, and Kakashi's fight with Madara can be heard miles away, and at this close proximity to the battle Sakumo's eardrums ache. "They're more likely to need your medical skills more than I do."

"You're dying _right now,_ Sakumo-san! If I can just—"

Sakumo grabs her wrist, and the green glow of medical chakra fades away. He can barely see her face without the light, but he tries to meet her gaze with his own anyway.

"Tell Kakashi he'd better not give Tsunade-sama too many problems without me to calm her down," he rasps to Sakura. "I can't save him every time he's late anymore. And tell him he'd better develop some decent cooking skills after I'm gone, because I'll come back and haunt him if he starts living off ramen again. Naruto isn't the only one on the team with bad eating habits."

Sakura almost laughs, but it turns into a sob at the last second. An explosion sounds from somewhere nearby. Naruto shouts, and lightning crackles in the distance.

"Go, Sakura," Sakumo tells her gently. "They need you." She doesn't move, and he shoves her weakly. Luckily it's enough to get her moving, and she stands.

"Sakumo-san…" she begins, voice trembling as she stares at him. Her eyes skate over his wounds. She knows that he will die soon. He knows, too, he can feel his body failing, but that fact isn't as alarming to him as he'd thought it would be.

There is another explosion, and a roar. The Kyuubi's chakra spills into the air. Flames lick at the sky.

Sakumo gathers the rest of his strength.

" _Go, Sakura!"_ he shouts, and she jumps, tearing away from him and running for the battle without looking back. She wipes a tear away but lifts her head like a true kunoichi, and Sakumo feels a surge of pride as he watches her leave.

He hates having to abandon the battle to them, but taking that blow for Naruto was more than worth it. He's confident in his son, and team seven. If anyone can take down Madara, it is them. His son, and his students.

He allows his eyes to slide shut, and relaxes for the final time.

* * *

In every world, it is different, but it all comes down to a single choice. To die, or not to die? To sacrifice himself, or live to fight another day? To fight, or to flee? The branches of time stretch high into the universe, and each has different beginnings, different endings. Sakumo's influence stretches through dimensions, carving silver trails into existence. Things change, sometimes not for the better. Not every story can have a happy ending, because their world is not one of peace.

Hatake Sakumo dies.

Hatake Sakumo does not die.

And the consequences of his choices carry through the ages, impacting hundreds of generations to come.

 **A/N: I don't know where this came from, guys. This morning I woke up and said, "Hm, I need some Christmas angst. Who can I torture today?" Sakumo and Kakashi were the lucky winners! :)**

 **It's not suppose to flow naturally, I wrote it with the intent that things would start to blur together and get confusing. I hope you were at least able to get what I was trying to portray. If you're still confused, I can try to clear some things up: Sakumo isn't time travelling, each time the scenario changes that's a different timeline that's been influenced by Sakumo's decision to kill himself or not, and whether he dies later in that time. Hope you enjoyed it, it wasn't beta-read so if there's any mistakes please point them out!**

 **Leave a review or a favorite if you liked it, Merry Christmas!**

 **-Meridianpony**


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